After four classes and a site tour to a local development, over 25 participants in the Wheat Ridge 2020 Planning & Development Academy have learned quite a bit about the planning and development process.

Stephanie Walter, a WR2020 member, remarked, “This is the most comprehensive and detailed class about planning I’ve ever taken.  As a resident, it has given me a lot to think about.  I want to know, as a young person in the community, how to make change happen.”

The Wheat Ridge 2020 Planning & Development Academy was designed and led by Director of Real Estate, Denise Balkas. She explains, "The academy is designed to educate and debate the choices Wheat Ridge has concerning its future.  Participants are learning about city planning and development concepts, processes and tools that could be used to implement a future vision for the community."

Class speakers included Fernando DePaolis, regional economist with the Denver Regional Council of Governments; Mike Rinner, vice president for the Genesis Group; Jim Sullivan, developer and former Wheat Ridge resident; Peter Pollock, Ronald Smith Fellow at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy; Malcolm Murray and Jerry Dahl, partners in the law firm Murray Dahl Kuechenmeister & Renaud LLP; Alan White, community development director for the City of Wheat Ridge; Dick Farley, principal at Civitas; Bill Mosher, developer with Trammel Crowe and a former Wheat Ridge resident; and Chuck Perry, developer of Highlands Gardens (old Elitch's site).

The classes covered demographics and markets of an inner-ring suburb, community planning concepts, urban design, and economic development and deal making.  The class concluded with a tour of Highlands’ Garden Village conducted by developer Chuck Perry.

The planning and development academy was sponsored in part by the Jefferson County Realtors Association. The academy will take place again in the fall of 2007.

The 2007 applications for Dumpster Days, Neighborhood Block Party Grants, and Landscape Renovation Applications are now available at http://www.wheatridge2020.org/initiatives.php

Please let your neighbors know these programs are available once again. While applications for Dumpster Days and Block Parties will be accepted from throughout the city, please note that priority is given to the current priority area of Sheridan to Pierce and 32nd Avenue to 44th Avenue. This is the area identified for impact by the Wheat Ridge 2020 Board. Please direct any questions about these programs to the office at 720-259-1030.

Please note that the tree-a-thon program may be delayed until the fall in order to take advantage of a better planting season (than summer) and to be a partner in the City of Wheat Ridge's participation in the Metro Denver one million trees initiative.  There will be a fall push for this initiative throughout the metro area.

The Home Investment Loan Program 2007 service area has been expanded. The board voted to expand the service area for the loan program beyond the current priority area of 32nd to 44th and Sheridan to Pierce. The new service area will encompass all homes between Sheridan and Wadsworth within the City of Wheat Ridge.

WR2020 remains committed to the priority area. Increasing the program to bordering neighborhoods will provide additional impact to the program. This service area expansion is intended to spark additional investment this year. Read more about the Home Investment Loan Program on our website.

Please check out www.WheatRidge2020.org for all of the latest information and events.

May 2, 8:15-9:45am
Operations Committee at WR2020 offices

May 8, 4:00-5:30pm
Finance Committee at 1st Bank Conference Room, 4350 Wadsworth Blvd.

May 10, 5:15-6:45pm
Public Relations & Communications Committee at WR2020 offices

May 14, 5:30-7:00pm
Neighborhood Initiatives Committee at WR2020 offices

May 16, 8:15-9:45am
Operations Committee (informal) at Big Sky Espresso

May 22, 7:30-9:30am
WR2020 Board Meeting at the WR Evangelical Lutheran Church, 8300 W 38th Ave